Thursday, January 12, 2006

Lauren and I went out to Lowes to buy some home protection gear (actually Max protection gear for the house). Max is getting rambunctious lately and likes to just run through the house. Full speed. Head Down. Arms Flailing. He is also tall and his head is at the level of the corner of the kitchen counters. We needed to buy bumper pads for the counters and foam bumpers and gates for the fireplace and steps. (Fireplaces in Florida who would of thunk it?)

The fireplace bumper was $40.00, the gates were like $100 and counter bumpers were $15.00(for four). I did not buy them. I am all for my child’s safety but I just could not see spending that kind of money.

It would be cheaper and easier to by Max a helmet and make some bubble wrap clothing for him when he is running through the house.

29 comments:

You are a mess. I had bumpers around the coffee tables, and i finally took them off. A few weeks later - BAM!! - off to the ER for stitches. DAMN. Well, you could make the investment, and split it between the two little boogers!

Not that Kami's competitive or anything. :-) Let me warn you, the stitches are ALWAYS to the head. Then you'll have to have the fight with Lauren about whether you should pay extra for the good plastic surgeon to protect his stunning good looks... or let him have a scar so he looks tough and has "character." Might be better to just spend the cash now.

Helmet and bubble wrap works. And you better take a picture. You know, they make this pipe insulation foam stuff you could cut to fit. They use it in play places to cover the metal posts. I used it in our house when the kids were at that body flinging stage and it was fun to watch them bounce off. (just kidding bouncing children is no laughing matter)Lois Lane

I find bouncing children highly amusing.I guess you need some basic safety stuff. But some folks go way overboard. My SIL bought every safety product, shield, gadget imaginable. And I couldn't help but think, "Or you could just WATCH the kid..."

The only piece of child safety equipment I ever invested in was a guard rail for the stairs, but then I figured teaching the buggers to scoot down backward would be much more effective AND fun. Which it was.

Oh. And I bought a leash for Alli (my youngest) when we took the kids to Disneyland (she was two at the time). Does that count? Boy! People had OPINIONS! And chose to EXPRESS them! UNSOLICITED opinions! But I didn't lose her, the little hellion, so eff 'em.

I say spring for the helmet (hee!totally one of my FAVORITE SNL skits!) and bubble wrap, and throw in some duct tape for good measure.

Much as I hate to say it, the gate's gotta be cheaper at Wally World. I hate that place, but they do have good prices. I'm with Lois on the pipe insulation stuff. DH just built himself a poker table and used that stuff as bumpers to round out the table edges...you can even cover it with fabric to make it more decorative if you want. Stacie

I don't recall ever having bumpers when I was growing up. What the hell do you need them for? Wait until you have the second child, you'll be locking down the entire house. Lauren is creative, tell her to make something out of the pipe insulation stuff that these people are talking about.

I think childproofing your house is a terrible idea. It will give Max a false sense of security growing up and make him more likely to live with you until he is 38. If you want to raise a kid with street smarts and instincts, you might even consider setting some boobie traps for him. If you boobie trap your house, he might become a figure skater. That's all I'm saying.

Max will thank you one day, and besides you have another little one, that will be running around, and when there are two....you will be thankful that you invested in the bumpers for everything.....but I do like the idea of a helmet and bubblewrap....but that's expensive too.....lol your a good daddy...

I only put on corner bumpers on my bedside tables, and a couple of gates on no-go areas, and a couple of latches on kitchen cupboards. Managed to pick up the gates at Garage Sales for next to nothing. Try second hand shops, or opportunity shops, or Charity shops ... beats paying $100. Good luck,Meow

First, how tall is your son, and what month was he born?? The Boy was born in August of 04, and he's HUGE, but still not head level with kitchen counters...yet. I am amazed.

Second, I would love to say, don't buy the bumpers, he'll learn after he runs his head into the counter a couple times, but that logic does not seem to apply to my son, who insists on climbing and standing on anything he is able to (and there are many things), no matter how many times he falls and bonks his head.

My friend bough 'pool noodles' (one dollar each)which are hollow (usually) and cut them to fit around corners and stuck them on with either double sided tape, velcro or zip ties. her 4 kids are scar free, on the outside anyway.

My MIL made a (crash) helmet for SIL when she was younger. Take a hat (she used a baseball cap) and wrap it in foam padding. Strap on kiddo, and off you go. It's only a matter of time before we make one ourselves for ds. :)